Wanderer
by AlexDrexler
Summary: Out to prove to himself that he is indeed the 'man among men' his mother wants, Ranma leaves the dojo to take a training trip of his own.
1. Default Chapter

The young man paused, sheathed in the glow of silver moonlight as he stood perched upon the wall surrounding an uncommonly large piece of property in this area of Japan. Slowly he turned to face the house, hesitant for a moment to continue with the course of action that he'd chosen earlier that night. As he looked over the compound, deceptively quiet in the early morning hours, he thought of the experiences he'd had there over the course of the past two years. Some were pleasant, some were not, and some made him cringe just to think about them. Never the less, this place had been home and the people sleeping peacefully inside had become the only family he'd ever known in his short life. His eyes rested the longest on one window in particular, wherein lay the one true love of his life. A love that brought him joy, yet pained him to the very core of his soul. It was because of this love that the young man had finally decided to leave everything behind and become a wanderer. Maybe, by taking this journey of self-discovery, he might become master of his fate. Only then, when he is in control of his life, could he hope to express his love to the one inside. Only then could this young man rid himself of the chaos that has plagued him since he was a young boy. Only then would he truly feel himself worthy of the title 'man among men' that his mother so desperately wanted him to have. With a final, wistful look, he brushed away his tears and lept into the darkness of the street below and headfirst into the unknown. 


	2. Day 15

Ranma watched his reflection as it distorted and reformed  
in time with the ripples from the gentle breeze blowing through   
the valley. Finally, after two long weeks of bad weather, over-  
zealous bandits, and less-than-generous innkeepers, he had   
reached his goal.  
  
It had taken him and the guide hours to navigate the   
springs of Jusenkyo toward the fabled 'Spring of Drowned Man.' It  
was a small, quiet spring roughly fifteen yards or so from the   
center of the training ground.  
  
[[It smaller than I think,]] Ranma said in broken Chinese,  
more to himself than to the guide beside him. Ranma had learned  
from his father's mistakes and had at least learned a little  
Chinese during his trek across China.  
  
[[Yes,]] the guide responded, [[it is the smallest spring  
in Jusenkyo. There is no record of anyone falling into it by   
accident.]]  
  
Ranma nodded, still not taking his eyes off the rippling   
waters that had eluded him for so long. An infinitely long   
moment passed as Ranma stood at the pool's edge, poised to jump in.  
Suddenly, in a flash of movement too fast to follow, Ranma was no  
longer at the side of the spring, but was retracing his steps back  
out of Jusenkyo, the guide trailing after him. 


	3. Day 40

Sweat poured from Ranma's forehead as he stood facing  
his opponent. This had been the hardest battle of his life and  
his body was already showing the signs of the struggle. Bruises  
and shallow cuts covered much of his body and his muscles were  
burning from the exertion. Ranma's only consolation was that   
his opponent was also rather bruised, though not as badly.  
  
Suddenly, his opponent relaxed his stance and bowed. It  
took quite a bit of effort on Ranma's part to return the bow   
without falling over from exhaustion.  
  
"Very well, young man," the old man who had been Ranma's   
opponent said. "You have proven yourself worthy of being   
admitted into the school of Hakkyokuseiken."  
  
Ranma smiled. "Thank you, Master Jubei. I am eager to  
learn."  
  
"Good boy. Very good. But for now, this old man needs   
a little rest. It's been quite a while since I've encountered   
a young man as skilled as yourself," Jubei said before turning  
toward his house.  
  
Ranma breathed a silent sigh of relief and reached into   
his backpack for the small picture he carried with him everywhere.  
He gazed at it wistfully for a moment before gathering up his   
belongings and following Master Jubei into what would be his home  
and training ground for the next few months.  
  
==================================================================  
  
Author's note:  
  
First of all, let me say that this is far, far from over.  
I plan for this to be something I work on when the muse hits me.  
It will be a series of short scenes in which Ranma meets those   
under whom he wishes to be trained. I may eventually do a side   
"chapter" or so describing the reactions of all those left behind   
in Nerima. No guarantees, though on anything except that this will  
be ongoing for a LONG time. I can easily envision 50, 60 chapters  
or more. Also, if you'd like, write a short scene that fits into   
this loose story line and send it to me. I may post it as a   
chapter; giving you FULL credit of course, and this will help to   
diversify the story and keep it more interesting. 


	4. Day 145

Ranma winced as the dull side of his opponent's sword   
struck his ribs yet again.  
  
"Come ON, boy!" the man with the sword shouted as   
Ranma clutched his side. "You're worse than my other worthless  
pupil!"  
  
Anger flashed in Ranma's eyes and he stood up and   
resumed his fighting stance.  
  
{Alright,} Ranma thought. {I've been holding back my  
special attacks, but this jerk's just pushed me too far.}   
  
"NOBODY calls me worthless," he growled.  
  
"Ah, so you DO still have some fight left in you! I   
guess I'll give you one more chance, but if you can't even  
manage to give me a bruise this time, I won't teach you."  
  
"Fine," Ranma said, smirking cockily, "but you're gonna  
have a lot more that one bruise when I'm done with you."  
  
The other man chuckled a bit. "Well, is that so? Let's   
see if you can make good on that when I go all out."  
  
"That's just the way I like it."  
  
With that, the two men charged one another and an epic  
battle began.  
  
--------------------  
  
Several hours later, Ranma awoke to a dull throbbing in  
his head. As he tried to sit up, most of his body protested and  
he fell back down.  
  
"So, you're finally awake," came the swordsman's voice.  
"I must say, I'm rather impressed. It's been a long time since  
I've had broken ribs," he said, gesturing to his bandaged side.  
  
Ranma declined to reply as he was trying his best not to  
move.  
  
"So, I've decided that you are worthy of learning my art;  
the school of Hiten Mitsurugi, but on one condition."  
  
"What's that?" Ranma grunted when the other man showed no   
sign of continuing.  
  
"You will teach me this 'Ascension Moko Takabisha.' It  
is a rather powerful technique."  
  
Ranma smiled and closed his eyes for some much needed rest.  
  
===================================================================  
  
Author's note:  
  
Well, the third installment is complete. I hope there's at  
least a few people out there who are enjoying this... but I don't  
think that's all too likely... Oh, well... can't win them all, right? 


End file.
